Thesis

Ángela, a film student drafting a thesis on violence in cinema, stumbles onto a disturbing real artifact: a snuff tape showing a girl being tortured to death. Her curiosity grows into paranoia as the footage echoes a brutal past on her campus. She learns the recording involves people connected to her university and suspects the culprits are closer than she thinks. As she digs, the line between academic inquiry and dangerous obsession blurs, pulling in her professor and the people around her. The search forces Ángela to weigh the lure of forbidden knowledge against the risk of exposing herself to a lethal conspiracy. What starts as a scholarly puzzle becomes a chilling test of nerve and perception, with lasting consequences.

Directed by Alejandro Amenábar and written for the screen by Mateo Gil, Thesis marked the filmmaker's feature debut. Shot in Spain in the mid 1990s, it helped establish Amenábar as a rising voice in European horror and thriller cinema globally.

Thesis grossed about 2.65 million dollars worldwide, a respectable figure for a debut Spanish thriller in the mid 1990s. Its modest yet steady earnings reflected strong genre interest and helped Amenábar build momentum for later international projects around the world.

The film's tense atmosphere and found footage sensibility left a mark on Spanish genre cinema, influencing later thrillers that blend academic settings with creeping dread. The provocative premise sparked debate about on screen violence and ethical boundaries, contributing to Amenábar's reputation as a guide through modern horror for audiences worldwide.

Critics greeted Thesis as a compact, effective thriller anchored by strong performances from Ana Torrent as Ángela and the supporting cast. Reviews praised brisk pacing, sharp social critique, and the way fear arises from questions about truth, media, and complicity in modern dissemination of violence. It helped shape future thrillers.